Notable Quotes in King Lear

my love'sMore ponderous than my tongue After hearing her older sisters deliver extravagant declarations of love for their father, King Lear, Cordelia tells herself that she is the one who loves him more than words can say.

King Lear, having enticed Cordelia to speak (competitively) of her love for him in order to compete for the most opulent third of his kingdom, is insulted by his youngest daughter's answer, "Nothing, my lord."

Do: Kill thy physician, and the fee bestowUpon thy foul disease. The Earl of Kent has been challenging King Lear's decision to disown Cordelia and Kent's opinion so infuriates Lear that he reaches for his sword: Kent's response is impertinent, as an earl tells the king to go ahead and kill the only person who is trying the heal him of the "foul disease" [perhaps a disease of ego] which caused him to disown his favorite daughter.

I want that glib and oily art,To speak and purpose not; Cordelia is trying to explain to her king and father that the reason she offended him should be considered a virtue, as she lacks the ability to make speeches with no intention of following through on her promises [unlike some sisters may be implied].

A still-soliciting eye, Cordelia further explains to her king and father that the reason she offended him is that she is bad at currying favor [another virtue].

'Tis the infirmity of his age: Goneril has just pointed out Lear's changeableness and poor judgment [in casting off Cordelia, his former favorite] and Regan agrees, attributing his actions to the decline of age.

The Fool is trying [unsuccessfully] to divert Lear from his troubles and the storm. King Lear's response is a total disconnect; he seems not to have been listening to anything but his own dark thoughts.

I am a man
More sinn'd against than sinning.
King Lear encourages the gods that control the elements to strike their enemies [enemies to good] and lists different types of sinners, concluding that the balance of sin is in his favor: the sins against him are greater than the sins he has committed.

King Lear thinks that his wits might be in jeopardy which makes him notice the cold; he remarks with wonder how the necessities of the body can make a vile hovel seem precious when you are wet and cold in a storm.

King Lear's thoughts turn to the plight of the poor and their vulnerability in a storm, a subject he acknowledges he has considered too little in his life. Lear dares himself to take his cure [his 'physic' or course of medicine] by exposing himself to what the 'houseless' wretches must endure.